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Endangered Nicholls degree program gets a boost

Members of a geomatics class at Nicholls State University look over a project Tuesday on the Thibodaux campus.

Abby Tabor/Staff

Daniel McBrideStaff Writer

Published: Wednesday, February 9, 2011 at 11:33 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, February 9, 2011 at 11:33 a.m.

THIBODAUX — A Nicholls State University degree program in mapping and surveying received a $100,000 donation this week even as it is targeted for elimination by the state.

That seed money is a step toward a $250,000 endowment for scholarships in the geomatics program. Once complete, interest from the invested money will create 20 scholarships worth $1,000 per year for the program, the only one of its kind among Louisiana's public colleges and universities.

Surveying is a crucial skill in south Louisiana, with a wide range of engineering, oilfield and coastal-restoration applications.

“I have four students that work for me now that graduated from that program,” said Jimmy Chustz of Chustz Surveying, a New Roads underwater surveying company. “These guys are worth their weight in gold.”

Chustz Surveying donated $50,000 to the endowment Monday, with another $25,000 from both the Louisiana Society of Professional Surveyors and the Contractors Educational Trust Fund. Balaji Ramachandran, the geomatics program coordinator at Nicholls, said the professional organizations are interested in seeing geomatics thrive because the average age of surveyors in Louisiana is rising into the mid-50s.

“If this program is gone, it's going to affect the surveying profession,” Ramachandran said.

Geomatics is one of the 16 academic programs at Nicholls targeted for possible elimination as a “low-completer,” meaning the program did not produce enough graduates within the past three years. These are among the 450 programs across the state that the Board of Regents, the governing body for Louisiana higher-education, wants to cut.

The proposed cuts come as officials deal with an estimated $1.6 billion state budget deficit for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

State administrators are seeking to reduce higher-education costs and consolidate degree programs among Louisiana's colleges and universities. Board members also say they want to eliminate duplication — the same programs being taught at different schools.

“It is critical that we improve the efficiency and productivity of our institutions' delivery of academic programs,” said Regents Chairman Bob Levy in January.

If the state's colleges and universities want to keep those programs, they'll have to defend them before the regents, a task for which Nicholls administrators are now preparing.

Other targeted programs at Nicholls include bachelor's degrees in math, chemistry, music and multiple four-year degrees for K-12 teachers.

Larry Howell, special assistant to the president at Nicholls, said the university plans to fight to keep all the programs. Program leaders at the university are now working to prepare that defense, Howell said, and those plans are due to the regents by Feb. 28.

Ramachandran said there are good reasons to keep the geomatics program, and that the “low-completer” designation is misleading. Not only is the program unique in the state, but the program is also relatively new, meaning there are not as many graduates. It is also not required to have a geomatics degree to receive a license in that field, meaning there are many students who take the classes and enter the profession without obtaining a degree directly from the program.

Yet Nicholls geomatics students have higher success rates on their licensing tests, Ramachandran said. Nationally, only about 70 percent of test-takers pass the Fundamentals of Surveying exam, he said, compared to about 96 percent of Nicholls geomatics students.

And Ramachandran said he was able to place 53 students in paid internships in summer 2010.

“This program is on par with national standards,” Ramachandran said. “We're going to fight for it.”

Chustz, who has a 23-year-old son in the program, said working with the program's graduates has convinced him that's the right thing to do.

“When you place them on the survey party, they are ready, they are prepared, they are educated,” he said. “We need those bad. I hope the state doesn't cut this.”

Staff Writer Daniel McBride can be reached at 448-7635 or daniel.mcbride@houmatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @BayouSchools.

<p>THIBODAUX — A Nicholls State University degree program in mapping and surveying received a $100,000 donation this week even as it is targeted for elimination by the state.</p><p>That seed money is a step toward a $250,000 endowment for scholarships in the geomatics program. Once complete, interest from the invested money will create 20 scholarships worth $1,000 per year for the program, the only one of its kind among Louisiana's public colleges and universities.</p><p>Surveying is a crucial skill in south Louisiana, with a wide range of engineering, oilfield and coastal-restoration applications.</p><p>“I have four students that work for me now that graduated from that program,” said Jimmy Chustz of Chustz Surveying, a New Roads underwater surveying company. “These guys are worth their weight in gold.”</p><p>Chustz Surveying donated $50,000 to the endowment Monday, with another $25,000 from both the Louisiana Society of Professional Surveyors and the Contractors Educational Trust Fund. Balaji Ramachandran, the geomatics program coordinator at Nicholls, said the professional organizations are interested in seeing geomatics thrive because the average age of surveyors in Louisiana is rising into the mid-50s.</p><p>“If this program is gone, it's going to affect the surveying profession,” Ramachandran said.</p><p>Geomatics is one of the 16 academic programs at Nicholls targeted for possible elimination as a “low-completer,” meaning the program did not produce enough graduates within the past three years. These are among the 450 programs across the state that the Board of Regents, the governing body for Louisiana higher-education, wants to cut.</p><p>The proposed cuts come as officials deal with an estimated $1.6 billion state budget deficit for the fiscal year that starts July 1.</p><p>State administrators are seeking to reduce higher-education costs and consolidate degree programs among Louisiana's colleges and universities. Board members also say they want to eliminate duplication — the same programs being taught at different schools.</p><p>“It is critical that we improve the efficiency and productivity of our institutions' delivery of academic programs,” said Regents Chairman Bob Levy in January.</p><p>If the state's colleges and universities want to keep those programs, they'll have to defend them before the regents, a task for which Nicholls administrators are now preparing.</p><p>Other targeted programs at Nicholls include bachelor's degrees in math, chemistry, music and multiple four-year degrees for K-12 teachers.</p><p>Larry Howell, special assistant to the president at Nicholls, said the university plans to fight to keep all the programs. Program leaders at the university are now working to prepare that defense, Howell said, and those plans are due to the regents by Feb. 28.</p><p>Ramachandran said there are good reasons to keep the geomatics program, and that the “low-completer” designation is misleading. Not only is the program unique in the state, but the program is also relatively new, meaning there are not as many graduates. It is also not required to have a geomatics degree to receive a license in that field, meaning there are many students who take the classes and enter the profession without obtaining a degree directly from the program.</p><p>Yet Nicholls geomatics students have higher success rates on their licensing tests, Ramachandran said. Nationally, only about 70 percent of test-takers pass the Fundamentals of Surveying exam, he said, compared to about 96 percent of Nicholls geomatics students.</p><p>And Ramachandran said he was able to place 53 students in paid internships in summer 2010.</p><p>“This program is on par with national standards,” Ramachandran said. “We're going to fight for it.”</p><p>Chustz, who has a 23-year-old son in the program, said working with the program's graduates has convinced him that's the right thing to do.</p><p>“When you place them on the survey party, they are ready, they are prepared, they are educated,” he said. “We need those bad. I hope the state doesn't cut this.”</p><p>Staff Writer Daniel McBride can be reached at 448-7635 or daniel.mcbride@houmatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @BayouSchools.</p>